I initially thought I had temporarily escaped the troubles of the Du'an tribe and could rest for a few days. Now, the black spider mark has become a new source of anxiety.
In the following days, the weather grew increasingly cold. Fortunately, the food supply in the Kasa tribe was still adequate, so there was no immediate cause for concern.
During this time, I took some time to return to our camp, briefed Qu Xiangyun and Shangguan Yao, and then rushed back to the Kasa tribe.
There was no other choice. My life was on the line. The sooner I found a way to remove the black spider mark on my chest, the safer I would be.
Every day, after waking up, I would dive headfirst into the ocean of knowledge. If I had shown such dedication during my college entrance exams, I probably would have aced them all.
I had them retrieve all the remaining animal skin scrolls from the Kasa tribe. These skins generally appeared to be hundreds of years old, some even bearing burn marks.
Although I had learned some of the barbarian language from Kexin and Keya, I still struggled to read them. After all, hundreds of years had passed, and the barbarian script had changed significantly.
Fortunately, with Kexin by my side as a translator, she could resolve any difficult issues I encountered.
Days passed one by one, and in the blink of an eye, I had been staying with the Kasa tribe for about a week.
As I read more and more animal skins, my understanding of this deserted island deepened.
While this was a good thing, I was disappointed to find no other relevant information besides the account of the La'sha tribe that Keya had told me.
Damn it, it seems the former La'sha tribe was truly unpopular. After such a large tribe collapsed, their history was completely erased!
I frowned, feeling a sense of strangeness.
If the La'sha tribe had truly oppressed other tribes to their limits, then even the limited records I had seen now should not have survived.
What struck me as even stranger was the event that led to the La'sha tribe's destruction overnight. It seemed to contain a great terror, as if merely recording it in writing would invite disaster.
I became increasingly interested in the deliberately buried history of the La'sha tribe. It wasn't just because their black spider totem was related to my life, but also out of a person's pursuit of truth.
Perhaps the Du'an tribe would have records?
After all, no matter how complete the Kasa tribe's animal skins were now, they were remnants that had survived warfare.
The Du'an tribe, however, was different. According to Keya, since their rise, they had consecutively annihilated several small tribes on the island, likely incorporating the collections of these smaller tribes as spoils of war.
What if the Du'an tribe possessed more records of the La'sha tribe?
Once this thought entered my mind, it took root and refused to leave.
The black spider pattern on my chest was like a death countdown. Every second I lived was another step closer to the Grim Reaper.
Now I had two choices: either obtain information about the La'sha tribe from the Du'an tribe by any means necessary and find a way to resolve the black spider mark on my chest, or follow Keya's earlier suggestion and go east to find the sacred lake for a cleansing.
The second option was only a last resort if I couldn't find any other way to solve the problem.
I tossed aside the animal skin in my hand and leaned against the edge of the tent, looking up and thinking carefully.
The attitude of each tribe towards these animal skins before me was generally the same. These items were passed down from generation to generation and were extremely precious.
Although some tribes who believed in different gods would erase records of the gods worshipped by others, animal skins were generally the greatest wealth of a tribe.
And to obtain the animal skins from the Du'an tribe, I had only two options: attack or outsmart.
Now, nearly a hundred of the Du'an tribe's warriors had been eliminated by us, leaving them severely weakened.
If we were to launch a surprise attack on the Du'an tribe at this moment, it might succeed.
"Kexin, do you think if we attack the Du'an tribe now, we could catch them off guard?"
Kexin was also looking through the animal skins with me. She looked up at my words, her bright, sparkling eyes revealing a thoughtful expression.
"Master, the Du'an tribe has lost so many people recently. They will definitely be extra cautious to ensure their stronghold isn't wiped out in one fell swoop."
"Besides, every tribe has its unique secret arts. Although I don't know the Du'an tribe's secret arts well, if they can become a dominant force for a time, there must be a reason."
Kexin's words were like a bucket of cold water, completely dousing the fervor in my heart.
I calmed down and fell into confusion again.
If a frontal assault wouldn't work, then it had to be a strategy.
Could it be that I, Lu Zi Ye, had to transform into Lu Bangde?!